Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 6, 1994 TAG: 9402180198
SECTION: YOUR WEDDING PAGE: YW-16 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: By BECKY HEPLER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
It's not just the weather, although what can a bride do in the face of a downpour but add to the water level with her tears? It's also hordes of bugs, some of which may cause allergic reactions in the wedding party or guests. It's moths, attracted to the light of the candles and ending up doing the backstroke in the punch bowl.
It's trying to navigate Great-Aunt Emma through the soggy grass in her wheelchair. It's the hay fever attack brought on by the pollen in the air. It's the potential of salmonella lurking in sun-struck potato salad.
Depressed yet? Actually, you shouldn't be. It is possible to beat back a capricious Mother Nature. It just takes meticulous planning and a Plan B, and it's definitely worth it.
Diane Whitehead of Terrific's/Catering Unlimited, Inc. loves outdoor weddings. "People love to be outside," she said. "If you give them a choice, they will always elect to be outside."
Whitehead said she always devises three plans if it's to be an outdoor wedding. The first is for the best of all possible worlds, lovely weather. The second plan is a revised plan, for less-than-perfect weather, but with the possibility of pressing ahead outdoors. The third plan is for the worst possible scenario. Brave woman that she is, Whitehead's worst is high winds and lightning, which will drive her indoors. All other weather conditions she's willing to confront. "I can heat a tent, no problem," she said.
For the bride considering an outdoor wedding, then, it does mean considering alternatives. A small rain shower can delay a wedding, and that's manageable. The bride has to remain flexible, willing to bend a little to the conditions.
However, that flexibility can become a problem, if the wait becomes prolonged or the weather is acting particularly schizoid. So you may want to consider having a back-up plan, with conditions clearly articulated, the cut-off point established, and maybe even delegate that decision to a clearer head, like your wedding director.
That keeps down the waffle factor and that cuts down the amount of stress on the bride, surely a top priority. If the wedding director knows in advance the point at which to switch to Plan B, that's one decision the bride doesn't have to make, and it's a clearer head making the decision.
Plan B could include using tents, (heated if need be) or reserving an additional room, either at the same site of the wedding or nearby. At Mountain Lake, the gazebo is a popular place for weddings, but brides wanting to be safe, not sorry, also reserve one of the conference rooms in the hotel or use the porch on the front of the hotel.
(For those who like to gamble, Buzz Scanland, Mountain Lake manager, says only a very small percentage of the outdoor weddings are actually rained out. This reporter was one of that small number whose wedding occurred on the day of a toad-strangling rain and was extremely glad to have had the room reserved.)
Terrific's is another place that increases your options, because the courtyard, with its hundreds of bulbs and flowering shrubs, peaceful creek and stone benches was made for outdoor festivities such as weddings. However, if the weather gets unmanageable, the club, snug and dry, is just on the other side of the parking lot.
Irene Robinson, of the Wedding Center in Pulaski, said one of the most romantic, touching scenes she witnessed at a wedding was the bridegroom offering to carry the bride's inhaler during an outside wedding. The bride was allergic to bee stings and it was her antidote in case she got stung.
If you're trying to avoid that, there are things you can do to control the insect population that are more environmentally friendly than gassing the place. Richard Fell, associate professor in entymology at Virginia Tech, said timing is everything.
The population of wasps, hornets and bees reaches its peak in August and September, so planning your wedding for spring or early summer helps to sidestep part of the problem. There is an added bonus in that during the spring there are alternate food sources besides wedding feasts for these creatures, so they will be less likely to bother you.
Finally, Fell suggested evening hours rather than afternoon, since wasps and hornets are not creatures of the night. Of course, there is a tradeoff. The candles and lights will attract moths, and, as he said, "Punch does lose its appeal when you see a moth swimming in it, unless you're willing to consider it an auxiliary protein source."
Reception foods do demand extra consideration. Whitehead said her outdoor weddings tend to have different menus, because some things just don't work outdoors.
"No big pieces of red meat, such as a steamship beef or a ham, unless you're serving from the kitchen," she said. She also eschews sticky sweet candies and desserts, bug magnets for sure, as well as cheese, because the heat makes it sweat. Staples for these occasions are fruits and vegetables. The key is keeping things nicely chilled. Whitehead also uses lots of citronella candles and plants that drive away insects.
It is possible to survive and enjoy an outdoor wedding. It depends upon careful planning and a very flexible attitude. Remember, you can't fool Mother Nature.
by CNB